Serial addiction

We spend untold hours sharing our TV heroes’ hopes and fears, and miss them sorely when the series ends. The following tours put you back in the middle of the action, thankfully.

1

Sherlock

London, Great Britain

Met London’s least likely housemates yet? Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch) keeps eyeballs in his microwave and shoots holes in the wall when he’s bored – quite to the amazement of ex-military physician Dr. Watson (Martin Freeman), who moves in with the hyperintelligent detective at number 221B Baker Street. That London address is one stop on a three-hour tour of locations (link below) that picks up the trail of exciting criminal cases and a special friendship. Make sure to take the tour on a gray and rainy day.

2

Narcos

Medellín, Colombia

“Plata o plomo?” (silver or lead?) When Pablo Escobar (played by Wagner Moura), asks this question, the bribe is definitely the better bet. “Narcos” tells the story of the brutal Columbian drug lord who dominated the international cocaine trade in the late 1970s and ’80s. The Pablo Escobar Tour in and around Medellín includes Hacienda Nápoles, once the symbol of his megalomania, today an amusement park. The sports plane he used to make his first deliveries stands atop the entrance. Another stop is the Escobars’ family tomb.

4

Sex and the City

New York, USA

Possibly New York’s most famous set of steps: When cool, elegant columnist Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) leaves her apartment, her outfits regularly set trends. The Sex and the City Hotspots tour is an entertaining homage to Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha, who celebrated their friendship in 94 episodes against the backdrop of Manhattan. Highlights of the tour are a cute cupcake stop in the Magnolia Bakery and a visit to the Scout bar. What should you order here? A Cosmopolitan, of course.

5

Tatort

Duisburg, Germany

Rough and ready, but romantic. That’s Schimanski and his city, Duisburg. Germany’s “Tatort,” which has been on the air since 1970, has seen more than 100 detectives since that time. Antihero Horst Schimanski, immortalized by the late Götz George, debuted in 1981. Usually slightly hungover and sporting his eternal beige jacket, he careered through the streets of Duisburg in his Citroën – almost like a German James Bond. Whether you take the yacht, bicycle or pedestrian Schimmi Tour, it will of course finish with a typical curry sausage.

6

Game of Thrones

Reykjavík, Iceland / Aït-Ben-Haddou, Morocco

George R. R. Martin’s books tell the story of brave warriors and a dragon queen, of love and hate, bloody battles fought in the snow and shadow wolves as true companions. “Game of Thrones,” the series they gave rise to, is the most successful fantasy TV series of all time. The battle for the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros was filmed at various locations in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Iceland, Croatia, Morocco, Spain and on Malta. There are many tours around. For the most contrasting, try the ones of chilly Iceland’s Thingvellir National Park and the Moroccan desert town of Aït Benhaddou, which really bring the Song of Ice and Fire to life.